Title

Author

Honors Program

Midway Honors

Date of Award

5-2015

Thesis Professor(s)

Nicole Prior

Thesis Professor Department

Criminal Justice and Criminology

Thesis Reader(s)

Jennifer Pealer, Edith Seier

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis project is to measure the level of knowledge that university students have regarding state and national illicit drug classifications in the United States and associated penalties with these classifications, as well as the harms resulting from consuming illicit drugs. This particular study, which is to be conducted as a replication study to Higson’s campus-based study on the UK drug policy, focuses on a different campus population in regards to the U.S. drug policy. Replication studies such as these are beneficial to previous studies because such additional research will not only strengthen the findings and correct additional errors, but new research may also explore new limitations to the data. Through survey-based research, a 40-student sample of East Tennessee State University Students (ETSU) will be asked to complete a questionnaire testing their knowledge on illicit drug policies and their harms. Such research and collection of data is important because based on student feedback, recommendations can be made in regards to educating young adults on areas such as illicit drug classifications, sentencing penalties, and potential harms.